Lloyds may pull the plug on its Scots charity funding

Lloyds Banking Group is considering ending its funding of the Lloyds TSB Scotland foundation that distributes £6 million a year to Scottish charities, the head of the foundation has claimed.

The bank wants to cut the share of profits it distributes to four British foundations from 1 per cent to 0.5 per cent. Talks with the foundations covering England and Wales, Northern Ireland and the Channel Islands are said to be well advanced but those with the Scottish foundation are stalled.

Mary Craig, the Scottish foundation’s chief executive, said yesterday: “Lloyds Banking Group has indicated that it is considering whether to serve notice on Lloyds TSB Foundation for Scotland to terminate the covenant.”

The profit-sharing covenant, set up by the Trustee Savings Bank in 1985,…